About Clarksville

Clarksville, Tennessee, is located about 35 northwest of Nashville, south of the Kentucky border. Interstate 24 has four exits to access the state’s fifth largest city, and the Exit 4 area is the major retail corridor with a mall and various shopping centers located along Wilma Rudolph Boulevard, which pays tribute to the city’s Olympic gold medal-winning native.

Clarksville is growing rapidly with a current population of 133,000, which is a 28 percent increase since 2000. Along with Montgomery County and other surrounding counties, the Metropolitan Statistical Area population is just less than 275,000, which is an 18.8 increase since 2000. Growth in the community shows no signs of slowing; Clarksville and Montgomery County have a total of 8,776 residential lots approved for building.

Fort Campbell Army installation and a promising future in the renewable energy industry are key components to the city’s growth.

Approximately 80 percent of active-duty soldiers and their families choose to live in Clarksville and the second-highest number of military retirees in the nation live around the city. The number of military families making their homes in Clarksville, even after leaving the Army, makes it a youthful market with a median age of 29. The military background of so many in the community provides a highly skilled work force that is very trainable.

Additionally, Clarksville is home to one of the fastest growing four-year universities in Tennessee. With an enrollment of more than 11,000, Austin Peay State University is adding student housing on campus and is anticipating more building without the aid of state funding. The state did, however, provide about $6 million to help construct the Hemlock Semiconductor Building for the university’s Chemical Engineering Technology Degree program.

The new degree program will support Hemlock Semiconductor LLC’s new $1.2 billion plant, which is Tennessee’s single-largest industrial investment. The plant, which will produce semiconductors used in solar energy and computers, is projected to initially bring in 500 jobs. While it is expected to be completed in 2012, efforts have already begun for a $3 billion expansion that could bring an additional 900 jobs.

Even before Hemlock announced its plans in late 2008, Clarksville’s economy was diverse and solid enough to weather the recent recession better than many communities across the nation. Since October 2007, sales tax collections have increased each month over the same month the previous year, except for January 2011, which was a slight decrease.

CLARKSVILLE/MONTGOMERY COUNTY

SALES TAX COLLECTIONS COMPARISON REPORT

2007-2008

2008-2009

2009-2010

2010-2011

July

$ 3,851,625.57

$ 3,807,908.75

$ 3,944,322.43

$ 3,973,449.15

August

$ 4,048,062.83

$ 3,969,101.90

$ 4,155,944.24

$ 4,485,348.58

September

$ 3,697,338.74

$ 3,591,425.40

$ 3,765,577.37

$ 4,044,918.09

October

$ 3,813,108.63

$ 3,666,073.38

$ 3,836,157.44

$ 3,971,998.55

November

$ 3,900,630.43

$ 3,614,756.11

$ 3,824,985.82

$ 3,943,598.18

December

$ 3,476,063.68

$ 3,479,758.37

$ 3,746,233.68

$ 3,865,625.08

January

$ 3,782,928.31

$ 3,911,901.46

$ 3,918,328.61

$ 3,978,924.86

February

$ 4,792,942.94

$ 4,984,794.05

$ 5,220,113.70

$ 5,316,606.81

March

$ 3,158,680.40

$ 3,529,385.22

$ 3,579,055.71

$ 3,519,094.43

April

$ 3,351,393.11

$ 3,738,282.75

$ 3,801,787.78

$ 3,944,756.92

May

$ 3,814,407.26

$ 4,044,427.55

$ 4,305,544.93

$ 4,527,749.91

June

$ 3,543,826.22

$ 3,833,299.78

$ 4,050,116.50

TOTAL

$ 45,231,008.12

$ 46,171,114.72

$ 48,148,168.21

$ 45,572,070.56

Increase/Decrease

*($525,338.19)

$940,106.60

$ 1,977,053.49

Notes: Collections are from two months prior. Tennessee has no income tax.
*Decrease from deployment of 101st Airborne Division. No decreases have resulted from more recent deployments.

In the 2010 Census, Clarksville-Montgomery County rose to Tennessee’s 4th highest median household income, which was nearly a 6 percent increase since 1998. Average retail sales are $2.02 billion.

With such rapid growth over the past two decades, a “Smart Growth” plan was devised by local leaders as a tool for developing business, industry, transportation, infrastructure and zoning.

Here are a few accolades Clarksville has earned in recent years.

2009 Business Facilities Magazine Economic Deal of the Year Silver Award